I Can Love You Like That
by notjaneausten
Summary: Carol left her husband Ed after he abused her and threatened their only daughter. Taking refuge with a group of other survivors in a quarry near Atlanta, Carol wonders whether 'happy ever afters' are just things that happen in books as her Prince Charming in the past turned out to be a troll in disguise. Little does she know that sometimes it can happen in real life too.
1. Not So Prince Charming

"Did you get much sleep last night, Carol?" Jacqui asked in concern as she looked at the paleness of Carol's face and the dark shadows beneath her eyes as a few of the ladies from their camp attempted to wash the copious amounts of laundry in the cool waters of the quarry. Carol looked over to check the whereabouts of her young daughter, Sophia, and spotting her a little further down the lakeshore answered Jacqui's question with a slight shake of her head.

"Not really, Jacqui; my ribs are still ache terribly and I kept waking up thinking that any minute Ed was going to come storming into camp after us. It's only really been a few weeks since Sophia and I left town; you know that I discharged myself early from the hospital without Ed knowing, right?"

"Yes, you left the hospital; hired a car and hit the road – that was when you met up with Lori and Shane out on the interstate." Jacqui nodded, she was familiar with Carol's tale but noticed that the two blonde sisters, Amy and her elder sister, Andrea might not have heard it all.

"How would he know where to find you though?" Amy asked curiously as she held out a hand for another dripping wet shirt to wring out. "It's not as though he would have known where you would go." Carol looked over at the younger woman and shook her head ruefully at the question.

"Ed would have known that I would have tried to head for a big city as soon as the trouble started, it's a lot easier to hide within a thousand people than it is in a small town." Andrea sighed heavily at the answer and lay a hand on Carol's shoulder as she took the basket of laundry out of her hands.

"Well, you're safe enough here with us now, Carol. We've got a big strapping Deputy Sheriff watching over us and they didn't call me a Shark in the courtroom for nothing, you know!"

"Andrea, you were a Civil Rights attorney, that hardly qualifies you as a shark!" Amy protested and was rewarded with a wet set of boxer shorts in the face for her impertinence and gasped as she got a mouthful of liquid detergent. "Ugghh!"

"Settle down ladies! Anyone would think you were Carl and Sophia's age." Jacqui smiled at the giggling sisters and nudged Carol's shoulder to point her in the direction of where the group's youngest members were trying to catch frogs with the aid of Shane, the Deputy Sheriff watching over them all. "Do you ever remember being that young and carefree?"

"Not really, when I was Sophia's age I had already lost my Mama so it was just me and my Daddy working the farm together. I would go to bed at night and dream of a handsome Prince to come along and rescue me from my Cinderella life." Carol smiled wistfully at the sound of her daughter's laughter floating down the shore to them.

"Was it really that bad?" Jacqui asked quietly as they continued to sort through the piles of laundry that Shane had very helpfully carried down to the quarry for them.

"Not really, it was just hard work. I'd get up at the crack of dawn to help Daddy with the milking and turn the horses out; then it would be time to collect the eggs to prepare breakfast before I'd put in a whole day at school before coming home to muck out the stalls then it was off to bed and repeat the next day. When my Prince Charming did finally come along, well we all know how that turned out…" Carol gestured to her still tightly bound up ribs and fading bruises around her cheeks and neck.

"How long did you put up with it for?" Andrea asked quietly as she reached for yet another shirt from the pile.

"Longer than I should have, I suppose. It was only when he started to threaten Sophia that I decided enough was enough. I knew I couldn't go back to my Daddy's farm, that would be the first place Ed would look for us; so I just picked the nearest city I could find and here we are."

"Yeah, here we are… Still, enough of this morbid conversation, let's lighten the mood a little!" Andrea squeezed Carol's arm to let her know that she was secure and surrounded by friends and called over to her sister. "Hey, Ames!"

"Yeah?" Amy looked up from rinsing one of the last shirts in the pile.

"What do you miss most now that the world's gone to pieces?" Amy smirked at her sister and raised an eyebrow.

"My phone, I miss texting."

"Hmmm, from the conversation we had on the drive up from Florida I think you mean 'sexting'…" Andrea smirked back and turned to Carol and Jacqui. "Apparently little Miss Amy has a thing for one of the teaching aides at the college."

"Oohh, Amy!" Jacqui let out a slow whistle and chuckled as the younger girl blushed at the attention. "I miss my coffee machine with automatic drip feature…hmmm….."

"My Beemer… and my vibrator." Andrea leant back against the boulders and let out a slow moan of dismay. "Yep, definitely my vibrator the most." She gave a sideways glance over at Carol. "What about you, Carol? What do you miss the most?"

"The fairy tale." Carol's softly spoken words had all three ladies gathering close to her. "No more hopes, no more dreams – just cold, hard facts. There will be no more fairy tales for Sophia…or for me." With those last few words, Carol rose stiffly to her feet and walked along the shore to re-join her daughter; wanting to soak up all of the joyous sounds of the children's laughter whilst it was still possible.


	2. Closer Than You Think

Daryl rose up from where he had been sitting behind a boulder gutting the few squirrels that he'd caught earlier when out hunting. He hadn't realised that he would be able to overhear the conversation drifting up from the gossiping women down on the shore but something in Carol's tone had struck him to the core as she had related the story of her growing up without her Mama and he'd settled back down just to hear her voice.

He too had lost his Mama at an early age, she'd started drinking heavily as a way to deal with his father's abusive nature. One day she'd passed out with a lit cigarette and had burnt the house down with herself still in it. His father had been unbearable to live with after that, his elder brother Merle had struck out on his own as soon as he was of age; which left Daryl as his Daddy's only source to vent his anger upon. The trauma of his early years had only made him stronger as a person and the very thought of a man laying a hand on any woman made Daryl seethe with anger; even his brother, Merle did not condone any man using his fists against a woman and for a walking ball of pent up aggression like Merle to admit to such a thing, was saying something.

Daryl finished skinning and gutting the squirrels, burying the offal in a deep hole to prevent any attraction to the Walkers and placed the prepared meat in a tin ready for whoever was on meal duty that night in camp. He looked up as the sound of the children's laughter grew closer.

"How many didja trap today, Mr. Daryl?" The light tone of the young Sophia Peletier had Daryl smirking over his shoulder.

"Enough ta keep ya belly from growlin', lil' Miss. How many frogs didja catch, Carl?" Daryl noticed the grimace that crossed the young Grimes boy's face as he looked down into his bucket and then over at Sophia's.

"None today. I think Sophia must have scared them all away."

"You take that back, Carl Grimes! You're just jealous because I caught four and you didn't catch any at all!" Sophia punched Carl lightly on the arm, causing the boy to yell and rub the offending area before running back up to the camp, no doubt in search of his overly protective Mother, Lori. Daryl also noticed Shane strolling up the quarry path, following closely after the boy and frowning darkly at Sophia as he passed them by.

"Where's ya Mama at, Lil' Miss? You know you kids ain't supposed ta be out here alone." Daryl scanned the area immediately behind Sophia, but couldn't see any sign of Carol. He had seen her leave the other women to the laundry to follow after her daughter but now she was nowhere in sight.

"She just had to rest a minute on the boulders, her ribs are still a little sore." Sophia bent her head back to her bucket of frogs and poked at them with a finger. Daryl rose from his seat on the boulder and thrust the pan of squirrel meat at the young girl.

"Here, you go on after Shane and Carl – don't let them outta your sight, ya hear me?" Daryl waited for Sophia's nod and pointed down the path. "I'm gonna give ya Mama a hand getting back up to camp. Dang fool woman lectures everyone else about keeping together and then goes off on her own. Well, go on git on with ya, girly!" Daryl shooed Sophia off after Shane, watching as she caught up with the other man who shot Daryl a look over his shoulder. Daryl pointed down the path and knew that from his higher viewpoint Shane would be able to see Carol's lone figure on the boulders. Shane nodded and took the bucket of frogs from Sophia and led the two children back into the camp.

Daryl muttered to himself as he stepped over the rocks strewn in the path leading down to where Carol was leaning against a large boulder, her face was pale and she was in obvious pain from her ribs.

"Takin' in the view, woman?" His low voice from behind had Carol whirling around in shock, wincing as the sudden movement caused her to catch her breath.

"Daryl? I thought you were out hunting with Merle today?"

"Nah, got back a while ago. Ran into ya little girl up top, said ya had a little trouble catchin' ya breath. Noticed good ole Shane didn't offer ya none, so I thought I'd see if ya needed a hand..." Daryl kicked a pebble with his boot, keeping his face averted so that she couldn't see how difficult it was for him to offer his help, or to even speak to her coherently in the first place.

"Actually, I wouldn't say no…" Carol whispered, she'd managed to walk down to the quarry and then along the shoreline to be with Sophia but that had used the last of her energy reserves and she was now near to tears at the thought of walking up that uneven and rocky path back to the camp.

"Hey no good cryin' bout it…" Daryl whipped out a red rag from his back pocket and offered it up to Carol to mop her face with. "Ain't gotta be 'fraid to ask fer a little help now and then, no one can go it alone."

"Thanks, Daryl. It's just that for a long time there hasn't exactly been anyone to offer me any help and it's just a little overwhelming, that's all." Carol accepted the rag and dried her eyes. Daryl offered his hand and she reached up to accept it, hissing as her bound up ribs protested the movement.

"Don't get mad alright?" Daryl stepped forward and Carol looked on in confusion as Daryl took a deep breath and steeled himself for what he was about to do.

"Why would I get mad…? Oh!" Carol gasped as she found herself lifted into Daryl's arms and carefully cradled against his chest.

"Now ya tell me if this hurts ya ribs and we'll stop, okay?" Daryl murmured as he started carefully walking up the gravelly path leading up from the quarry. His breath shook a little, it had been a long time since he'd touched anyone apart from his brother voluntarily, and now he found himself carrying a woman like a groom carrying his bride across a threshold. Granted, he could barely feel her weight in his arms, her figure was so slight he might as well as be carrying a child.

Carol was stiff at first, Ed had never carried her this way; not even on their wedding night. At most she had been either thrown over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, or dragged by her hair into their bedroom. One of the first things she had done after leaving the hospital was to have her long, curling hair cut close to her head – a small rebellion but one she felt proud of, maybe one day she would let it grow back. After a few minutes, she realised that Daryl was just as nervous as she was and made a conscious effort to relax; she felt his muscles relax in turn and heard his quiet sigh.

"I'm not too heavy am I?" Carol asked quietly, not wanting to strain the group's only provider of fresh meat.

"Ain't nuthin' but skin and bones. Cain't hardly feel ya." Daryl muttered and then flushed as he realised how that must have sounded to the woman in his arms. "I meant….I…na, ya ain't too heavy." He finally gave up and settled for what he should have said in the first place. Carol smiled faintly at how flustered the man sounded and looked up as they approached the campsite. She noticed that Andrea, Amy and Jacqui must have taken the other path back to the site as they were already there hanging out the wet laundry on wire strung by Dale and T-Dog between two trees.

"Whoo! Looks like chivalry isn't dead after all, Carol!" A wolf whistle from Jacqui and a catcall from T-Dog was enough to have both Carol and Daryl flush with the attention. Andrea and Lori stepped forward with their hands outstretched to take Carol into her tent to tend to her ribs.

"Okay, Prince Charming – you've rescued the damsel in distress…now how about you go and show Shane how **not** to chop up a frog?" Andrea winked at Daryl and somehow he knew that she had been aware of his presence behind the boulder the whole time the ladies had been talking down at the quarry. Daryl flushed again, knowing his face was likely to be shining brighter than Rudolph's nose on Christmas Eve and managed to drawl out a single word before his throat closed up completely.

"Stop."


	3. You Have To Kiss A Lot Of Frogs

Daryl stomped over to where Shane, Amy, Carl and Sophia were hovering over the bucket containing the four frogs that Sophia had captured down at the quarry. He arrived just in time to see Amy scooping up one of the smaller frogs and looking it over very carefully.

"Whatcha up ta half pint?" He asked curiously as she continued to gaze into the little frog's eyes.

"Just making sure we aren't going to kill off my future husband." She remarked with a wink, before setting the frog down into a separate bucket. Daryl's face screwed up in confusion as did both of the children's; Shane just chuckled in amusement.

"I think you're supposed to kiss it Amy, not just look it over." He patted her on the shoulder and she sighed heavily.

"I know, I think this one might be a little too small though."

"Y'all a bunch of crazy people, ya know that right?" Daryl perched on a log near the fire and scooped the frog out of the bucket and popped it in a pan of cool water. "Now then, when preparing frogs ya gotta remember ta put 'em in cool water, cause if ya put 'em in hot water, they're gonna hop right outta the pan."

"What did you mean, Amy?" Sophia tugged on Amy's sleeve to capture her attention, and Amy turned around again.

"When honey?"

"When you said something about your future husband?" Sophia screwed up her nose as she looked at Daryl placing the next frog into the cool water.

"What? You mean to say your Mama never told you the story about the handsome Prince that was turned into a frog?" Amy sat down on the log next to Sophia and started to braid her hair as she told her the tale of how a spoiled Princess threw a golden ball into a pond only to have it returned to her by a friendly frog. The Princess and the frog became friends and it was only after the Princess kissed the frog one day it turned into a handsome young prince.

"Oh that's so gross!" Carl nearly gagged at the tale and nearly rolled off the log when Andrea reached behind him to lay a string of squelching wet kisses across his face as she tickled his sides.

"Well, this handsome young man didn't turn into a frog, so I guess it was just a fairy tale after all."

"Andrea!" Carl protested when Andrea and then his Mother both tumbled him backwards off the log to try and kiss him into submission.

"I think the focus of the story honey, is that you've gotta kiss a whole lotta frogs before you find your Prince." Carol appeared out of her tent behind Lori and sat down carefully next to Sophia on the log, tucking a strand of flyaway hair behind her daughter's ear.

"Guess Dad really was a frog after all then." Sophia remarked to Carol as she snuggled in under her arm.

"More like a toad if you ask me." Carol remarked and Daryl smirked in agreement. He winked over at Sophia and Carol as he held the last remaining frog up to Amy and said with a grin.

"Wanna try ya luck with this one?" Amy shrieked as the frog leapt out of Daryl's hand and onto her lap. She jumped to her feet and ran behind Shane who sidestepped out of the way of the leaping amphibian.

"Might be your lucky day, Amy. I think this one really likes you!" Shane leant down to scoop up the frog and chased her around the camp, making kissing noises as Amy continued to shriek; until she finally locked herself in the RV until Shane returned the frog to Daryl to place in the pot.

"Last chance, ladies. Any takers?" Daryl hovered the frog over the pot, looking around the group; Carol held up her hands in protest.

"Definitely not, I think one frog per lifetime is enough for any one person to handle." She shivered a little in recollection of how her fairy tale marriage had soon evolved into a nightmare. Daryl nodded solemnly and placed the frog into the pot, carefully placing the lid on the top to prevent any further escapees.

"Toad, Mama. We already decided Dad was a toad. There still might be a Prince out there for you to find one day." Sophia kissed her Mother's cheek and heard Andrea cheer from where she and Lori were still ruffling Carl's hair.

"That's just what I keep telling her, Soph. Maybe now she'll believe me." Andrea jerked her head over in Daryl's direction and winked at the little girl; the action not going unnoticed by anyone else in the group apart from Daryl, who was keeping an eye on the frogs and Carol who had her head down stirring the squirrel pieces in the stewing pot. They both raised their heads when everyone in the camp suddenly started laughing at Sophia's wide eyed expression and Andrea and Jacqui giggling in excitement. Things were starting to become a little bit more exciting…

**AN: The Frog Prince, Edgar Taylor, The Brothers Grimm. **


	4. Return Of The Troll

"Buncha loud mouth idiots! Doncha know that sound carries all through these hills! I coulda been a whole herd a Walkers and y'all woulda eaten alive!" The sound of a very irate Merle storming into camp cut everyone's laughter short. It was true they had forgotten the dangers for a brief moment, but that brief moment of joy had brought them all together for what seemed like the very first time.

"Darlena? They got you doin' the women's work these days? Never thought I'd see the day my lil' brother would be sittin' stirrin' up the stew pot while there's not one, but five women about." Merle jostled his brothers' shoulder before turning around to call out to the tree line. "No use hiding back there, come on out and meet the gang!" Merle turned around to face the rest of the group gathered around the low burning fire. "Found a couple of new guys when I was scrounging around the city ; everyone meet Ted and…what was your name again?" Merle frowned as he looked over to where his two companions were walking into camp; both men were familiar to certain members of the group…

"Rick!" A cry from Lori had one of the men falling to his knees and holding out his arms to the now tearful woman as she nearly trampled everyone else trying to reach the husband she had thought long dead. She was joined in her tearful reunion by Carl who ran across to wrap his arms arouns his father's neck, hugging him tightly.

The other man was not met by hugs and tears; one look at Carol's frozen look of stark terror had Daryl knowing exactly what troll his brother had brought into their midst.

"Merle! You musta been stoned outta your ever lovin' mind! Doncha know who that guy is?" Daryl reached up to bring his weaving brother down to his level, to whisper furiously in his ear. He could tell by his enlarged pupils that Merle had found more than the two men on his scavenger hunt. "Yeah, his name's Ted Pelter or sommat like that; and he's looking fer his wife and baby girl. Says he's a good hunter, too." Merle smiled dopily at his younger brother as if seeking thanks for a job well done.

"You idiot!" Daryl smacked Merle across the shoulder and rose suddenly to his feet, leaving Merle to topple over in the dirt as he had been leaning heavily against Daryl's shoulder. "Come on Carol, Lil' Miss." Daryl dropped to his knees in front of Carol and held out his hand to her. Sophia was trembling next to her Mama, her fearful gaze darting frantically between the man that was her father and the rest of the group. Daryl's other hand dropped to her knee and he gave it a gentle squeeze of reassurance, before turning his attention back to where Carol was still frozen in place. "C'mon, Cinderella. Yer coach ain't turned to no Pumpkin yet; ya can jest call me yer frickin' fairy Godfather." Daryl kept kneeling before Carol trying to get her to focus her gaze on him and not on her husband. "Shane, Rick – ya might wanna reconsider taking 'Ted' on as part of the group. His real name is Ed Peletier and he's the one responsible for puttin' Carol in the hospital a few weeks back. She and Lil' Miss hit the road when she checked out early, 's why her ribs ain't nearly healed up enough fer her ta be on her feet too long." Daryl didn't change the tone of his voice, keeping it soft and mellow as he addressed Shane and the new fellow, Rick. Shane's face immediately darkened as he understood Daryl's meaning; the whole group had become very fond of the shy and retiring Peletier females and to think that they had suffered at the hands of the man just brought into camp made Shane's blood boil.

"Don't think we won't be having words about this later, Merle." Shane threatened as he stalked across to where Ed was casually leaning against a tree, his eyes narrowing as he watched another man kneeling at the feet of his runaway wife.

"Merle ain't gonna be remembering none of this later, never does." Daryl remarked dryly as he glanced across to where his brother was lying face down in the dirt, snoring heavily. "T-Dog, Glenn? Ya mind goin' over ta my camp and gettin' my stuff outta the orange tent down there?"

"Sure, why's that?" Glenn moved forward, eager to offer assistance.

"'Cause I ain't leavin' Carol and the girl alone in that tent with that troll around. Even if Shane kicks him out on his rear, he's still gonna be around and they need protectin'. I cain't do that if I ain't close." Daryl looked down at the slight tug on the bottom of his leather vest.

"Toad, Mr. Daryl. Mama called Daddy a toad, not a troll." A slight smile flickered over Daryl's lips at the whispered comment from Sophia and he reached over to tuck a strand of dirty blond hair behind her ear.

"Yeah, but when she kissed him he turned into a Troll rather than a Prince. So from now on, I'm gonna call him a troll; 'cause there's no way a real man would wanna hurt a pretty lady like yer Mama… or you." Daryl could hear the combined sighs of Andrea, Amy and Jacqui from behind him as he referred to Carol as 'pretty' but for once, it didn't seem to bother him in the slightest. At least he got Sophia to smile again and stop looking so fearful; now all he had to do was bring Carol back to them as well. "What do you say, sprout? Wanna give me a hand gettin' your Mama back to the tent?"

"She was like this before; in the hospital after Da…the Troll," Sophia stroked her mothers' arm gently and as she started to refer to Ed as her Daddy, changed it to the Troll; it somehow made it easier to speak about him that way. "I sat with her and kept talkin' and kissin' her cheek, but it was like I wasn't even there…" Tears shone in Sophia's big blue eyes, making them shimmer as she remembered the way that Carol had retreated far into herself, so far that even Sophia was unable to reach her.

"Kiss her, Daryl!" Amy called out from the RV, and was immediately shushed by Dale, telling her that now was not the time for inappropriate suggestions.

"She ain't Sleepin' Beauty and I sure as heck ain't no Prince!" Daryl muttered as he remained kneeling before Carol, "She's likely ta pass out cold from horror if she came around ta me plantin' one on her." This last part was said partly under his breath, but Sophia still heard enough to pat his arm consolingly.

"Ya ain't no beast, Mr. Daryl. Why doncha just pick her up again and I'll sit with her quietly in our tent until she's herself again? I'll go and make room for your sleeping bag and stuff."

"Ya ain't gonna mind me bunkin' in with ya both? Ya think ya Mama would mind?" Daryl scratched his scruffy stubble with his free hand as he thought over what Carol might make of the whole 'roommate' situation when she came around.

"Somehow I don't think she'd mind at all…" Sophia said mysteriously as she got to her feet and almost skipped off to what would now be a shared tent. Daryl looked after the girl in puzzlement before addressing Carol quietly.

"I'm gonna pick ya up again, Cinderella and take ya over fer a little rest. Ain't gonna hurt ya, jest pretend I'm that big ole pumpkin and yer off ta the ball again." Daryl carefully lifted Carol over to his lap and then rose to his feet, cradling her securely with one arm under her legs and the other across her back. When she slowly reached up a hand to wrap it around his neck, he knew that she was aware that he was trying to help and wasn't there to cause her any harm.

"Never took you for one to read fairy tales, Daryl." Glenn remarked as he met the other man by Carol's tent with the majority of Daryl's gear. Daryl merely scowled at the young Asian before dipping his head into the open flap of the tent and taking his precious cargo inside.

"What?" Glenn turned around to see everyone else scowling at him in the same manner.

"Jeez Glenn, you really know how to ruin a moment." Andrea cuffed him on the shoulder as she took Daryl's gear from him to deposit it directly outside the tent flap. "Go and get the rest of his stuff and then you can give me a hand getting our other Sleeping Beauty back to his tent." Andrea jerked a hand over at where Merle was still out for the count and then gently shoved Glenn back in the direction of Daryl's former campsite.

"Don't worry about it Andrea, I've got this." T-Dog stepped forward and with one swift move, slung Merle over his shoulder to carry him down to his tent. "You go on up and see if Shane needs a hand with the Troll and I'll fill Glenn in on the rest."

"Thanks, T." Andrea patted the large man on the back and he smiled as he led Glenn away. She could hear T's quiet rumblings and Glenn's yip of excitement and so guessed that the older man had filled him in on the way the rest of the group had hoped that Daryl and Carol would start to build on their friendship. Now though, it seemed they had a bigger hurdle to get over first – what to do with the Troll…


	5. Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Ed?

As Daryl and Sophia settled Carol into their now shared sleeping quarters, they could hear the raised voices from Shane and the others from just outside the tent.

"Doncha worry Lil' Miss – that's just the Troll huffing and puffing; Shane ain't gonna roll over and take it like those first two little pigs." Daryl reached over to playfully tug at a strand of Sophia's hair to turn her attention back to her mother who now appeared to be sleeping peacefully on the inflatable mattress.

"You've really got a thing for fairy tales today, doncha Mr. Daryl? First it was Cinderella, then the one about the Billy Goats and now Three Little Pigs."

"Amy was the one that brought up the Frog Prince and don't think I haven't forgotten that it was Glenn that mentioned the one about Sleeping Beauty…" Daryl smirked over at the young girl and they shared a chuckle at the thought of anyone trying to wake Merle up with 'Love's First Kiss'. The voices from outside grew more strident as Daryl heard Shane stomping around; knowing the other man well enough by now, he could almost visualise the former Deputy Sheriff slapping his ball cap against his thigh in exasperation. The noises suddenly stopped and they both heard footsteps crashing through the undergrowth, as whoever it was headed towards the Dixon's former camping ground. Just then Jacqui poked her head through the tent flap and called out that supper was ready.

"Sophia, Daryl supper's ready. Do you want me to bring a couple of plates in here for you?"

"What's goin' on with the troll, Jac?" Daryl had no intention of letting Sophia go outside to face the wrath of a vengeful father. Jacqui peered over her shoulder to make sure that she couldn't be overheard before stepping fully into the tent.

"Well, you may have heard a lot of raised voices out there – mainly on Shane and Dale's part; they didn't want Ed…"

"The Troll." Sophia interjected, and was fist bumped by Daryl as Jacqui laughed softly and shook he head, before continuing.

"Okay, so they didn't want the Troll to be given a spot in the camp at all; not after everything he's done…but Rick and T-Dog persuaded them that if Ed is guarded by someone at all times then he can stay – on the proviso that he camps out in your old tent near Merle. Shane's taken him down there now, as Merle is still out of it for the moment it looks like Ed will be spending the evening tied to a tree whilst he contemplates whether he'd really like to stay here or try his luck out in the big, wide world." Daryl didn't look satisfied with the outcome at all, the very fact that the Troll had even found Carol and Sophia was enough to make him on edge, but to have him sleeping just a few hundred yards away was something that didn't seem at all fair to either of the Peletier ladies.

"Sophia, you go on out and have something ta eat with Jacqui and the others. I'm not hungry at the moment, so I'll jest sit here a spell with yer Mama til she wakes up." Daryl persuaded Sophia to leave the tent eventually and shook his head when the girl offered to bring him back a plate for later. "Naw, you go on and relax a little, Shane'll keep an eye on you out there so you don't have to worry about anything. Go on, go and eat sommat before ya start wastin' away like yer Mama." Sophia frowned a little at Daryl's comment about her Mother's weight but her expression lightened as he winked to let her know that he was only fooling around.

As soon as he was alone with Carol once more, he scooted forward and took one of her slender hands within his own work roughened palms.

"I don't wancha ta worry about nuthin', woman. I ain't gonna let that man anywhere near ya or yer kid. I heard whatcha was sayin' out on the lake this afternoon; didn't mean ta listen in fer so long, but I couldn't help myself." Daryl noticed that Carol's head was at an awkward angle on the mattress and leant forward to slip her thin pillow under her head, trying to make her more comfortable. His hand lingered on her shorn, silvery hair as he smoothed it back from her forehead. "I betcha used ter watch all those chick flicks alla time when ya was growin' up – Romeo and Juliet and all that crappola; 's probably why ya fell so hard for the first fella that seemed decent to ya; at least til his pretty boy looks faded away and the Troll started to appear." Daryl thought he heard a noise coming from near the tent entrance, so he scooted back away from Carol to take a seat where Sophia had stored his own rolled up mattress; when he heard nothing further he continued speaking softly.

"My Mama was the same, when my Pa was in a mean temper she used to take me into her room to clean me up afterwards and tell me that everyone has a perfect 'someone' – that one person in the world that would be able to look past the outward appearances and see the beauty underneath. Well, things only got worse after she passed away – I ain't ever found that 'someone' that she kept goin' on about, not sure I really ever believed her anyhow; and from the looks of things ya ain't been so lucky either." Daryl broke off then, wondering why on earth he was babbling all of this nonsense in the first place. If Merle ever found out, he'd be calling him 'Darlena' until the end of time! Daryl rose to his feet and checked to make sure that Carol was still slumbering, satisfied that his foolish ramblings hadn't been overheard; he left her in peace and went out to check on Sophia.

As soon as he left, a lone tear tracked its way down Carol's cheek and she swiped it away with a trembling finger. She'd woken as soon as she heard Jacqui enter the tent and inform them that Ed was to remain in the camp; but didn't want to alert anyone to the fact that she was awake until she'd had time to process the news. She'd kept her eyes shut as she felt Daryl move her head back onto the pillow and almost sighed when he brushed his hand over her forehead. Carol opened her eyes now and stared up at the canvas ceiling of the tent, reflecting on what she had just learned about the taciturn hunter.

"I wish I had met you first…" She whispered softly to herself, "I would have waited a long time for someone like you to come along…but maybe I shouldn't have to wait any more…" Carol sighed gently as she let her thoughts ramble through her head; should she even try to start something new, knowing that her husband was just a few feet away? Would he even be interested in someone so damaged as herself? Then she remembered a phrase that he'd said his Mama had used; 'that one person in the world that could see past the outward appearances…' Carol sighed again and rolled over to get herself to her feet, she had a daughter to protect after all. What was it that Sophia and Daryl referred Ed as earlier? Ah yes, the Troll – she had a Troll to vanquish.


	6. When The Mouse Roared

**AN: I'd like to say a quick thanks to everyone that's been kind enough to leave a review so far, I know it's a little different than my usual WD fics; but what can I say? That's what you get from spending the Holiday weekend watching Disney movies with two children under 9!**

"I hear you've let the Troll stay," Daryl muttered to Shane as he walked over to the campfire to help himself to a mug of coffee from the ever present pot hanging on the trivet. Shane looked over and held up his hands.

"Hey don't look at me man, I did all that I could to keep him outta here. Hell! We all saw the bruises when Carol first arrived and I know that she still ain't fully recovered. Blame the Minister and the Bleedin' Heart over there." Shane nodded over in the direction of where T-Dog was tinkering with his church van and then over to where Rick was nestled cosily next to his wife and son near their tent. Shane looked over to where Sophia was sitting at the far end of the camp where Dale was entertaining the other ladies of the group with tales of his many travels in the RV with his late wife, Irma. "Between you and me, I don't think the man will want to spend too many nights in the camp anyhow. I cuffed him before I tied him to a tree, right outside Merle's tent door. He was already moaning about the smell comin' from yer brother – I think T mentioned something about Merle yakking up near the tree before he passed out again in the tent."

"I'm tellin' ya now, Shane. If that sorry excuse for a man tries anything with either of my girls – he's dead. I'm gonna move Heaven and Earth if it means keepin' them safe; if they don't wanna stay then I'm gonna hit the road with them."

"Wait a minute – 'your girls'? Since when did Carol and Sophia become your responsibility?" Shane made a move to poke Daryl in the arm, and saw the other man flinch away before it could make full contact. "Sorry, man… I forgot." Daryl shrugged off the apology and turned his attention to the low burning fire instead.

"I've been in their shoes, Shane," Daryl responded quietly, stirring the embers of the fire with a long stick. He turned to face Shane again and let his words sink in – "It ain't a place that anyone should have ta be in, so if they wanna go; we'll go."

"Okay, let's hope it doesn't come to that. We'll surely miss that woman's organisational skills, not to mention what she can do with a pan of squirrel; never thought I'd enjoy eating vermin for supper." Shane hit his cap against his thighs a few times and then turned on the log to see that Carol had emerged from her tent and from the look on her face; had heard every quiet word of their exchange. "I think I'll just go and check on Ed…make sure he hasn't worked any of the knots loose." Shane rose from the log and after a quick nod at Carol, made his getaway.

"So, you'd take me and Sophia out on the road would you, Daryl?" Carol's quietly voice question out of nowhere had Daryl spitting coffee everywhere as he whirled around on the log to see her standing behind him.

"Jeez woman! Ya tryin' ta give me a heart attack or somethin'?" Daryl patted the liquid off his pant leg with his rag, thanking the Lord that the liquid had been lukewarm at best.

"You didn't answer the question," Carol remarked as she gingerly walked the few steps from the tent to the log, and sat down with a sigh. She felt completely wrung out from the events of the day, and to be honest wanted nothing than to bury her head in the sand and forget all about it. However, since making the decision to leave Ed – the Troll, she had made a resolution that she would face her problems head on from that moment on.

"Meant what I said…If the two of ya decide that ya don't wanna stick around knowing the Troll is gonna be here, then we'll hit the road and try our luck somewhere else…Probably means that Merle will come along too, though."

"And the extra mattress in our tent…? I take it that's not the Troll's?"

"Hell no, woman!" Daryl shot to his feet, pacing up and down in front of her. "Ya really think that I'd have just spouted off all of that only to put that thing in your tent!" A quiet chuckle from Carol had Daryl shaking his head when he realised that she was only teasing. He sat back down on the log and started to kick at a pebble with his boots, "That's my mattress and gear…thought I'd be better placed ta keep an eye on yer both if I was nearer."

"Okay." Carol agreed quietly, secretly doing a little dance inside that he had volunteered to move inside the tent rather than just move his own tent.

"I mean…I can always sleep outside if ya don't feel right about me movin' in…" Daryl kept right on talking, not having heard Carol's agreement. He started to pick at the skin next to his thumbnail, a nervous habit he'd never fully grown out of.

"Daryl, I said okay," Carol stopped his babbling by placing a hand on his forearm, preventing him from picking even more skin off his forearm.

"Okay?" Daryl looked up, checking to see whether she was really sure about having a tough redneck moving into her sleeping quarters. It was cramped enough with just Carol and Sophia, but add him into the picture and things were liable to get real cosy.

"Yeah, okay. Now I need a favour from you in return." Carol stood up and crooked a finger at Daryl.

"Name it." Daryl rose up and hitched a hand on his hip, nervously twitching his fingers, what on earth could she be after from him?

"Lend me your pistol for a minute… I have a little visit to pay an unwanted guest." Carol smiled at the way Daryl's jaw dropped and she leant forward to press a finger under his chin to close it with a snap. "Trust me, I know my way around a gun…My Daddy had me out shooting with him every weekend since I was nine; he said that a young girl ought to be able to defend herself living so far out in the sticks as we did. I never could seem to have one around whenever I needed one when the Troll got angry...I think it's time for a little payback don't you?"

"Now Carol, let's think about this for a minute." Daryl tried to reason with her as he rummaged through his pack for his spare pistol. There was no way he was just going to let her walk down there alone, but did she really mean to kill the man?

"Don't look so worried, I'm not going to kill the Troll, Daryl! I just want him to know that I'm not prepared to be messed around with any longer…" Daryl handed over the pistol and watched in amazement as Carol quickly showed him that she was more than capable of taking it apart and reassembling it in the blink of an eye. "Ready, partner?" She drawled slowly, as she made a show of placing the pistol between her shirt and her waistband – all Daryl felt capable was to nod and go along for the ride. It looked like this damsel was more than capable of rescuing herself; he felt a little out of place, letting her take the lead; wasn't he supposed to be the one to ride in and save the day? He shrugged and dismissed the notion – who said that life was ever going to conform to a fairy tale anyway. He followed Carol out of the tent, hesitating a little when she seemed to sway a little, probably the combined effects of the shock and exhaustion building up; he was just about to step forward to offer her a shoulder to lean on when Carol pulled her shoulders back and shot him a look of determination.

"Lead on, partner. I've got your back."


End file.
